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“Moogie’s my stuffed puppy. Emily’s fixing it for me.”
“Oh? What happened to him?”
“His ear came off.”
“You played with him a little too much?” Summer reaches out and runs her fingers through his hair. Ryan moves his head away from her touch and her hand drops.
“Yes. But when Emily is done, he’s going to be as good as new. Right?” He looks up at her hopefully.
She places a hand on his head. But this time she does not move it. He flinches once but does not move either.
“I’m sure he will be. But in the meantime, you’ve got a fantastic playroom here. Can you show me around?”
Summer stands and waits patiently. Ryan looks as though he is trying to figure her out. Then he slowly gets to his feet with his head down. He moves at a shuffle and she follows. I see her reach out and touch his hair again. Then ever so slightly, her fingers move through it. He flinches only once. Then like a cat that cannot resist being petted, he leans into her touch. I am floored. Ryan does not like to be touched. Usually, he moves away. Sometimes even Sylvia has a hard time touching him when she cares for him in the nights. Sylvia gasps beside me and know that she is thinking the same thing I am. We continue to watch them.
I turn to Sylvia. “Well?” She smiles and nods.
“I’m speechless. I’ve been with Ryan for more than five years. I’ve never seen someone make such quick progress with him. What do you think she did to his arm?”
I watch the pair as they circle the playroom. Ryan is pointing out some of his favorite toys and she is engaging him in conversation. She corrects his pronunciation of some words as they talk. Then they approach what Sylvia and I call the final test – Ryan’s wall. Ryan has an obsession with toy soldiers and has built up quite the collection. He is also very particular about storing the collection. And no one can touch it without his permission.
“Would you like to play soldiers?” he looks up at her.
“I thought you’d never ask.” She smiles and ruffles his hair. Again, he leans into her touch.
“You take the yellow one. He looks like your hair. I’ll take the black one.”
Summer reaches up and takes down two of the soldiers.
Sylvia throws her hands up in the air. “That is it. This interview is over. How much can you pay to keep her forever?”
I watch the two of them crouch on the carpet and the way Summer becomes animated as she and Ryan play with the soldiers.
“You may go get her,” I tell Sylvia. She leaves and soon appears in the room. I watch as Summer hugs Ryan before she slips out of the room and there’s a strange tug in the pit of my stomach. I switch off the mirror and take a seat just before she enters the office.
I smile and offer her a seat. “Good morning, Miss Madison. How was your meeting with Ryan?”
She looks at me curiously, a tiny smile on her lips. “How doyouthink my meeting with Ryan went? You observed it all.”
“Is that so?” I cock a brow.
“It is. It’s common sense, Mr. Forbes. If there is an aspect of the interview that calls for me to interact with the child, there must be some camera or speaker in the room that would capture said interaction. Besides, you told me yourself yesterday you’d be watching.”
I cannot help but laugh softly. “Touché. So, what do you think of our Ryan?”
“He’s a sweet child,” She grins.
“He was throwing a tantrum, you know?”
“Every child does that. It’s all about how you manage the outburst.”
“What did you do to his arm? Sylvia and I are curious. She was having a fit because she thought you were going to remove the band aid which happens to be medicated.” I steeple my fingers and stare hard at her.
She smiles and nods. “I’m familiar with Dr. Swaby’s work. He’s the pediatrician for almost half of my students. I know that after a day or two the edges of the band aid leave a little sticky residue on the skin. Some of my students react the way Ryan did. So, I did what I would do with any of them.” She shrugs slightly. “I cleaned away the sticky residue.” She shrugs as if it is no big deal.
“Impressive. I don’t think Sylvia and I need to see any more. When can you start?”
Her face lights up with a breathtaking smile. “I’ve got the job?”
